But you haven't seen my man (man)
You haven't seen my man (man, man)
You haven't seen my man (man)
You haven't seen him (woah-oh)
He's got the fire
And he walks with it

Sad Girl - Lana Del Rey

I'm sorry, this song is so Aera looking at Jimin coded 😯 I AM BEGGING FOR MORE EDITS PLZZZ.

Jimin
🌌

How could Jimin underestimate the sheer devastation he could cause when that is all that he is good for?

Ever since he could remember, he was a stain on Aera's life, and willingly so.

***

They were 18 years old.

Jimin watched Taehyung and Aera. Dancing together like one perfect pairing. They looked right for each other, with cutting bones and feline eyes.

He had been sitting on a bench near the fireplace. Drinking mead directly from a bottle as he kept his eyes melded onto their forms. Taehyung would send him a worrying glance occasionally, which pissed him off even more. The man wasn't even enjoying the fucking glory he had within his palms.

Aera hadn't even looked at him once.

That made him deranged because he couldn't stop looking at her.

The deep midnight dress she wore cascaded down her body like ocean waves. It showed off every subtle curve, the line of her back, and her stark collarbones. She usually didn't wear anything low cut, but of course, she did tonight for her prince. Her black hair floated around her shoulders like night itself, her cheeks flushed a healthy pink.

And her jade eyes were brightened by her smile.

Jimin nearly cut his hand as he took an aggressive swig out of his drink.

She would never try to dress like that for him. No. The last time they talked she told him she'd rather wear a burlap sac than be forced to dance with him on one of these occasions.

"Why don't you just go and get her?" Yoongi's voice startled the man out of his thoughts.

Jimin schooled his face, hoping nothing betrayed him. No one could know how deep his feelings ran, and just how unreciprocated they went.

"Are you mad? Why would I do that?"

"Oh, are we all supposed to pretend we don't see you both scarfing down each other's lips while staring at each other?"

His body went cold. Others noticed?

It didn't change anything. Aera still wanted his best friend and was going to marry him. Jimin was just a villain in her happy story.

"There is no pretend," Jimin said, as he outright played pretend.

He wasn't lying. At least, from his perspective. He liked staring at her one because it made her angry. And she was gorgeous when she was angry. Two, because if focused at just the right angle, he could imagine it was her pretty face on his.

He was just sure she wanted to compete with him, not be with him.

Yoongi fixed him with a glare. Jimin grumbled when the man stole the mead right from
his hand and drank, "I've heard stories. But that isn't enough to convince me of anything. I've seen the way you look at her."

The way I look at her?

Like a piper, she called to him. He was looking at her now like he wanted nothing more than to consume her and rebuild her anew again.

The fact that Yoongi noticed was worrisome, as the most observant of the bunch. That meant Jimin's abilities were slipping.

"Please, tell me! Apparently, everyone knows better than I." Jimin baited him, waiting.

His friend fixed him with a look, that made him wish he never asked. "Like a man starving."

The man said it so finitely, that Jimin could not even deny it. Instead, he let it sink into his chest until it burned and cracked just like the alcohol did.

"It doesn't matter."  He shook his head, leaning against the stone wall.

Yoongi joined him, crossing his arms. Of course, choosing right now to be a curious fuck. "Tell me why."

Oh was there ever a list?

Jimin didn't hate her because she didn't want him, that felt childish. There were many things generally wrong with the girl. Even if he was standing beside her breathing, she would comment how it was annoying he was alive. She had an attitude even a high priest would gasp at. She acted harshly towards him, misunderstood his every action, and would enact revenge a thousand times worse than what small joke he played on her.

He would never admit all of this drew him to her even more.

Because when her eyes were blazing with murder, her fangs at the ready, and her small torso heaving, that's when he knew he was looking at the real Aera.

In those moments, everyone else resembled shadows. She was a bright light in a sea of dark. More real and defined than the rest, because she showed him everything. Every side of her, the good, the bad, and the downright uncivilized.

He wanted it all.

Jimin let his voice get louder, just enough so that if Aera decided to tune in she could hear it. Though his voice was pathetically jealous even to his ears, "She's terrible, self-righteous even more than the prince. She's a pompous brat-" The man smirked, feeling tipsy and ready for a fight as the pair continued to swirl to the music before him. "Ihrin."

"Ihrin?" Yoongi repeated.

Jimin did not like the unexpected twist of possessiveness in his stomach. It made him feel weak. She didn't even know Jimin knew her full name.

He tried saying it aloud, before bed. Late to himself at night.

He ended up whispering it a thousand more times, liking the way her name felt on his tongue.

"It's her full name. Don't call her that, she doesn't like it."

"Then why do you care? Isn't your whole purpose to make her dislike her time here?"

Jimin started to get up from the bench.

"I'm leaving—"

Yoongi pulled on his arm, lucky that he was too drunk to be in an entirely abhorrent mood.
"No, you're not. This is the most interesting thing I've heard all evening. Explain. I want to hear all about your and your most beloved enemies' dark tale."

Jimin rolled his eyes, though he secretly felt a little prideful he caught the elusive man's attention.

He took a slow breath, lowering his voice. He was suddenly grateful that Aera was not paying him any attention, he didn't want her to hear a single word.

"It started when we were children. I wasn't stupid, I knew why she was brought here. There were no girls our age with a high enough ranking for Taehyung to be betrothed to. So why would the Queen not invite her best friend with a girl of age to the court? Taehyung and I teased each other about it, calling the faceless girl his wife."

Yoongi nodded, urging him to continue.

"When she arrived, I no longer felt the urge to laugh. Taehyung already had an air about him. He was polite, but he didn't want her. He never wanted her. But I- " His heart skipped a beat as he thought of the memory. How every era of their lives meshed together, "I was so young when I saw her the first time. It was like they had plucked a winter pine from the forest and decided to throw her into the sea. She had that same god-awful expression on her face at seven years old as she does now, at 18. The one that pulls at her lips into a bow and turns her eyes into venom. I felt personally afflicted that she hated us and our home so much already. I cannot pull people out of their misery. I can only redirect it."Jimin accepted that about himself years ago. That he would forever be the shadow in this life. In fact, he preferred it. He would not change himself, even if to be someone Aera could want. "So, for many reasons, I chose to make her misery my own."

He waited for Yoongi to ask what that meant. The man did not, an intrigued emotion drawing his brows together.

"List them."  The man sat forward, "What, you think you can get away with poetry like Taehyung? Gives me the reasons, now."

"Fine. Like I said, she was already set on being miserable here. Coming to a new land, making all new friends. Giving her someone to hate was giving her a new purpose."

"Noble. Next."

"She was too soft for this world. Just a sad, rain cloud of a girl. I wanted to prepare her for what living in our court would be like. As we are all vicious creatures deep down." Jimin smiled to himself, knowing he was the most wicked of all. "She barely spoke for months. I pulled her hair just to make her angry, just to make her feel something."

Just to get her attention away from Taehyung.

Yoongi pondered that, settling in a comfortable position as he took in Jimin's ill-mannered doctrine, "Hmm. Reasonable. But that's not the real reason."

"Hmm?" Jimin feigned a mixture of aloofness and drunk stupidity.

Regret, regret, and more regret. He only spoke of this because he knew Yoongi would not tell a soul, or use it against him. Yoongi would then have to worry Jimin would tell his sister about the man's hidden feelings.

Still, it did not feel good to have his feelings spread out for others to inspect. Especially when he knew no matter who poked and prodded, nothing would change.

"Don't play coy with me Jimin. Why did the girl that caught your little heart at that age become the object of your deviations?"

"Is there truly ever a reason? Or is it just what fate laid out for us." Jimin's eyes strayed to the dancing pair. Still held a polite distance away, Aera got caught on the length of her skirt. The pair began to laugh. A memory clutched at his throat as his heart threatened to stop beating, "The little girl with dark ebony hair, reddened cheeks, and drenched eyes that made her irises pure green, her round face covered in tears. She glared at all of us. Her parents, the Queen, and little Lily. Me." Jimin grimaced, bearing pointed teeth. Feeling just as incensed as the first time it happened, "For Taehyung? She smiled."

"And you decided you'd make her regret it?" Yoongi inquired without judgment.

"No. I decided I was going to break her heart before he ever got the chance." The man answered, nearly struck sober by the truth of what he said.

Jimin let the maliciousness of the statement hang in the air, though it was the opposite of his intentions. Until it became a weight that he could no longer bear. Someone was willing to listen, and the more Aera clung to someone else, the more he felt like he needed someone to hear his woes.

Before he did something crazy, like go and tell her himself.

Jimin shook his head, speaking lowly through his teeth. Words laced with both frustration and covet.

"He was never going to choose her for himself. But I did. I chose her, and she chose me for her taking. We are each other's dark vice, we let out our trickery, morbidity, and desires out on each other."

That was when Yoongi reacted, and Jimin knew he had made a fool out of himself. Because the usually stoic man wore sympathy like a ribbon on his goddamn face.

"You're alright with that being your only purpose in her life?" 

Jimin was not alright seeing her in another man's arms, not when that man didn't want her. He wished he could say he would be better if the man did indeed want her as much as him, but then Jimin would have to end him for daring too.

While he enjoyed being at each other's throats, he wished he could hold onto hers as he entered her from behind. He wished those green eyes would stare up at him with both hatred and lust. Sometimes, instead of her insulting him, he wished she would kiss him sweetly instead. He wanted both, he wanted everything.

He missed the times they had been friends. He wished he could wake up in the morning beside her. He wished he hadn't been cruel to her after she accepted the engagement.

He wished she hadn't accepted the engagement.

And he was so desperate for scraps, that he would eat them all gladly.

"Happiness is fleeting. Contentment is temporary. Sadness comes in waves. Hatred is a torrent, a briar of thorns that sticks into the skin and pinches without end. I make sure every day that I am the last thought that enters her mind before she goes to bed, a new thorn in her side she cannot pluck out."  Jimin admitted, haunted by flashes of green as she was spun around the room.

Yoongi clapped his shoulder, "Well, Jimin. I have all the answers I wished to know."

"Do you?" Jimin muttered, wondering what he could have possibly gotten out of that other than he was a fool.

Yoongi smiled, "Yes." The man leaned closer, "That if there is any other woman that comes along and you show her interest, I won't believe it for a second. I won't believe you even if you declare yourself a bachelor for the rest of your life, or renounce love entirely. You will love that woman until it kills you."

It just might.

"She is betrothed to my best friend," Jimin answered because that was all that needed to be said.

There would be no ending worth writing about for him.

"As if that matters to anyone here." Yoongi laughed, before sending him a mischievous grin. "Now go put a new thorn in your darling viper before she goes to bed with that smile on her face."

Jimin did exactly that. He took his mead in hand, pretending to be drunk as he toppled into the pair, soaking Aera's dress. The red that blazed across her cheeks when he offered to help take it off was all worth it.

Yet Aera was the last thought on his mind before falling asleep, and she didn't even try.

***

"We're here," Aera announced, looking between the map they had been given and the chariot window.

It was the first time she had spoken during the entire day and night voyage. Jimin didn't even care about his slowly healing injury. Nor the impending doom that lurked in his chest, coiled and icy.

Just as it felt before his mother had visited him.

Jimin had always wanted to go to Italy, and still, his gaze did not venture to look at it.

He stared at Aera as she refused to look at him. Jimin wished whoever attacked him had struck true through his heart. It would be much less excruciating.

"We can book ourselves into that inn over there. It's close to the main market area, it will be crawling with people. It looks like there are already people at the bar waiting to spill their secrets."

Jimin nodded his head, pulling out two small glass bottles from his luggage. One was already filled with a pale gold liquid, the other empty. He listened carefully, slicing his wrist and letting his black blood pour into the open glass bottle.

Aera turned to him then, her eyes wide and her nostrils flared.

He bit his tongue. He wanted to rejoice that she wanted at least one part of him. It felt humorous until the thought traveled to his heart and the true blankness of her gaze settled on him.

Her hatred felt different this time, it felt real.

She did not doubt in her mind that he somehow tricked her into this.

"Drink." Jimin's voice came out, muddied with his thoughts. "The sun is hot today. Your linen dresses should be more suitable." He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. "I have an extra tonic for your eyes."

He could be gentle to her. Try and show her that he would never have done what she believed him to do. It felt more effective than explaining that he had felt devastated that she already had a pereche, and he never thought he would get the chance. That would mean she would know everything about his feelings for her, and he was not sure he would survive divulging that.

The man felt immense guilt, for his soul purred with pleasure. It wrapped around his mind like a vice, satisfied that Aera was entwined with him in some way. It was a war within his mind, simultaneously feeling sick and fulfilled by their accidental union.

Mine. Aera is mine, for now.

His stomach rolled, and he wanted nothing more than her skin on his. He bit the sides of his cheeks, drawing blood. Trying to pull his mind from the primal urges that crawled under his skin.

He wanted to fall to her feet, and she wanted nothing more than to run. He took in the slight angle of her bones, her deep-set eyes, the frown on her full red lips. He groaned, adjusting himself closer to the wall of the carriage.

Mine. Something he had always known, but never wanted. Not without her yes.

"How—?" Aera stared at him, questioning his intentions as always. Didn't she see?

Or did she refuse to?

"You squinted all the time at home. Whenever you would walk outside the sun would touch you. They say that the lighter your eyes are, the more you are sensitive to the light. Because your eyes are green I brought extra." He coughed uncomfortably, shifting forward so that she could grab the bottles easily.

She continued to glare at him, quickly snatching the bottles from him. He thanked the gods their skin did not brush because he would have lost all of his careful restraint. Aera needed a version of him that was like a lullaby, not an orchestra.

"I knew that."

No, you didn't.

Jimin smirked to himself, not wanting to worsen her already terrible mood.

She lifted the bottle of blood to her lips first. He watched her, making sure she took every last drop of him. That thought went straight to his favorite appendage, and he carefully placed his arm over himself. When she placed the tonic in her eyes, he almost offered to do it for her.

"I don't need your help." Aera bit at him before he could even get the words out.

The animosity of it withered him. He felt his chest churning, boiling. Did she believe I would do this to her?

Jimin shook his head. Of course, she did. Only a few weeks ago, she thought I set her up with Garnett just to take her choice away.

He tried to settle himself, but he felt the unease and panic truly set in. It had always been a game, tittering on the edge of a true battle. Yet, in the time he had lost his mind, had he truly done too much damage to recover? Had he finally broken her in ways that he could not fix? The man swallowed, filling a chasm of fear open inside of him.

Was it too late?

He never meant to hurt her, not really. Not in this way.

They got themselves a single hotel room.

They placed the chariot close to one of the docks and hidden in an abandoned building. Neither cared to inspect the large space of the room, nor the strange sounds coming from the room next to theirs. Aera sat on the bed, fixing the laces on her boot. Jimin tried to slow his breathing.

Jimin stared out the open window, at the waterfall cliffside. A stream of houses in ornate colors lines the world all the way to the brilliant teal ocean.

What would the world have looked like if Leila hadn't sacrificed herself? What treasures would have remained hidden away, remained asleep, and succeeded? That line of thought did little to qualm his unease.

"What should we do?" The man asked casually, feeling anything but casual around her.

She blinked away the liquid in her eyes, settling her jade-green eyes on him. Unsettling him in all the ways he yearned for. "What we were meant to do. Ask around, and gather anything that might be suspicious. Unless you have been hiding the magical ability to track your long-lost grand-god." Her teeth glinted as she bore them to him, "Though I wouldn't be surprised if you hid something that important from me."

The lack of emotion in her voice broke him. He should just let go of his pride and tell her everything.

Everything.

"Aera."

"Save it for someone who will believe you."

Jimin worked his jaw, letting out a slight laugh. "You're right, I should." He pretended to consider the outside world, "But I find that pretty lies make it much easier to find the truth. It'll be easy enough to get that from a woman tonight to find what we need."

"Like I would care."

Shut up, you idiot.

He was more than sure it was the mate bond that fueled his tongue, and the anger behind it. Her voicing her mistrust wounded him in ways he could not understand. It was a blatant rejection of them, of their joining.

For once, he could feel her lying. She was, he knew it. He knew that the idea of it bothered her, no matter what happened in the past between them. No matter what occurred now.

She didn't want him with anyone else.

His smile was vicious as he stopped leaning on the wall beside the bed, walked closer to her.

Aera recoiled, looking like he just bit her. "What are you doing?"

For fucks sake, I do not know myself.

"Seeing if you still wish to play the game, even if you lose." Jimin leaned closer, inhaling her scent. His lips parted, his eyes slightly closing.

There was a chance, no matter how small. It sent him into a small frenzy, on the hunt and sensing blood.

He would find out the truth if he meant anything to her still.

Aera curled her lip glaring up at him, her hands spread over the bed, her hands grasping the sheets. Holding herself back?

She laughed, the sound making him want to retreat. "What do you expect me to care about now that we are bonded? Will you be loyal to me and only me, faithful pereche? Will you give up Leila for me? Don't even think about looking at another woman." Aera leaned closer, snapping her teeth. Her gaze burning through him with hostility, "Who the fuck do you think I am Jimin?"

The woman who I have loved since I can remember.

A woman who prefers the dark, but refuses to admit it.

Aera stared between his eyes and lips, her look softening. Just for her to catch herself, and raise her chin higher.

Fighting him, fighting them.

Jimin thought of every moment between them and knew. That what he had thought was wrong, and what was truly happening was infinitely worse.

Aera wanted him, but she didn't want to want him. She refused her inhibitions for reasons he could assume, but would not pretend to know.

"You know what Aera, I'm sick of this. I am sick of you." Jimin placed his hands on either side of her, sinking into the plush bed. He would never be sick of her, but sick for her. She didn't need to know that at the moment. Her breath caught before her scowl deepened. Jimin brushed his nose against her, his tone a challenge. "Hate me forever for all I care, but you should hate me for what I have done. Not what you fantasize about so you can fool everyone, including yourself."

Her jade eyes seared him, as she ignored him completely. "Meet me in the corner of the bars in two hours. If you don't have any new information when you come back, I will make you regret it. Fine?"

Her chest hindered, the pace increasing. Matching the racing of his heart. Goosebumps appeared on her skin as he leaned closer, and he wanted nothing more than to run his tongue along them. But she kept a blade in his heart, pushing him away.

"Keep telling yourself it's fine," Jimin said softly, holding himself back. "But I think a part of you is scared." His lips brushed back her cheek, settling close to the shell of her ear. "Not because we are bonded, but that you fucking want it." Aera's breathing sped up intensely, and Jimin could not pull himself away from her heat, her scent, "Do you think you're better than me? Do you think I am a monster, and you are without claws?"

He knew she wasn't, the nail marks she had given him took time to heal. There were words she had thrown at him that refused to mend at all.

Aera pulled back, just enough for their eyes to meet. Her breath met his own, her red lips parted and he wanted to shatter the distance between them. The sun filtered in turning her once pale skin golden, her eyes into a shimmering lake. "Get it through your thick, dramatic skull. I never have, and never will want you."

The words were not beautiful like her, they were ugly. They were the of the same kin as the words that sent him away from the castle and into the arms of the enemy.

Jimin would not run this time, not when it brought him further away from her. He would not be able to withstand their separation, not in this condition.

"Every brush of your skin against mine is like a thousand needle pricks. Your mind is etched into my lids when I close my eyes. That fire that you've felt under your skin since we've bonded begging for release? You forget that I know you feel it too." Jimin shivered, giving her too much. Her eyes remained on his face as he pushed away from the bed, taunting her. "Or maybe, I am simply wrong and you hate me so much you can overcome whatever it is our bond is doing to us. I'll be back on the hour, darling pereche."

I felt all of it before that night.

"You're wrong Jimin." She whispered, his back turned. "You are the last person I would ever choose to be with. I'd rather perish."

He turned, as she wedged her knife through his heart. Over, and over as it plunged in and out, cutting him more deeply than she even understood with those very words. He felt his stomach roll with sickness, his chest cave with a longing that could not be filled. He let his face show no expression.

"I know." He said, defeated.

From the stoic look on her face, he knew what she was thinking. She remained frozen, in the same position as he left the room. He willed himself into walking away and down the steps, instead of going back into their room and stealing an answer from her lips.

Jimin roughly made his way to the bar, acknowledging the entirely boarded-over windows that hid the fading sun and the new flesh that would walk into the doors. The sea town was bustling with people, and soon enough they would wash away their woes with alcohol and other bodily vices.

Too bad his only woe and vice wanted nothing to do with him.

"Brandy, please. The strongest you've got." He called to the tender of the bar. The older man nodded, and Jimin inspected the place around him.

A group of five men at the right. Young. It is where Aera would go.

The thought alone was enough to make him want to take the table underneath him off of its hinges and throw it at them.

A lone man was sitting to his left, older. Already drunk.

"Here. It's on the house." The bartender winked, tilting his head to the side.

Jimin lifted his brows in confusion, before scenting another human beside him.

"I haven't seen you around." Said a higher, crystalline voice from beside him.

The man turned, off-put by the strange scent. He turned, readying himself for a fight if need be. He was slightly taken off guard when he met hazel eyes and a feline smile. If Jimin had to guess, she was what this region thought to be the most beautiful.

She had dark wavy hair, a Roman nose, thick-lashed eyes, and tan skin. Her teeth shone like pearls as she smiled at him, a mixture of human and...

"My name is Serafina." She offered out her hand. Jimin looked at it, narrowing his eyes. She pulled back her hand, placing herself on the barstool next to him. Her light green dress swished by his leg and he let it happen. "You are quite the pretty one aren't you?"

Someone coughed beside them. Jimin turned to see a tall, dark-haired man sitting at a table behind them. Only a flash of deep teal could be seen underneath his hat. The man was with her, and he did not like what was occurring.

"Am I being set up?" Jimin asked, swishing around the deep brandy before taking a drink. There was no poison in it, as he suspected. He set the glass down, eyeing the strange woman carefully. "Are you one of Nox's minions?" Jimin paused, gesturing to the man behind him, "What about your friend? I do not think he likes me very much."

Serafina rolled her eyes, and then turned to the bartender. She oozed appeal as she leaned over the old wood, curling her finger at the old man. He blushed, quickly pouring her a glass of red wine and setting it faithfully before her.

Jimin couldn't help but laugh in disbelief. If she wasn't so blatantly suspicious, she would be delightful.

The woman leaned closer to him, and he knew she wasn't flirting. Her eyes darkened, and Jimin nearly fell out of his seat when she lifted her teeth and there were fangs.

"I showed you mine. Now show me yours." She laughed, before letting them sink back into her gums.

Jimin drew closer to her, wondering if he imagined it. "That is impossible." He withdrew his upper lip partially, showing off his own, much sharper fangs. Serafina stood up out of curiosity, her head tilting to the side.

"I have heard legends of beings like us, drawn into the night from another realm." She shook her head, "I just did not believe you were real. You're not a vampire?" Her accent lifted the word, making it a statement and a question.

"No, but you are."

"Right. My partner and I crossed through the shadows to get here. We are in this world on a different plane."

Jimin took another sip of brandy, a headache starting to form between his temples. "Whatever that means." He pinched his nose, "Are we going to compare fingers, toes, and belly buttons has your curiosity been satisfied?"

Serafina's brows lifted together, and she let out a smaller, hidden laugh. She wiped away at the wine that remained at the corners of her lips. Jimin withdrew, feeling an energy that threatened to swallow him from the stranger. He knew something more dangerous lingered beneath her friendly exterior.

"I need something from you." Serafina acknowledged gravely, some of her exuberance falling away. "And you need something from me. How about we help each other out?"

Jimin leaned forward, his melting smirk lifting his lips. Though he was sure the woman before him would not fall for his usual tricks. "Convince me."

Serafina's eyes swirled with both brown and green, like the bottom of a river. "I do not have to try very hard at all. You mentioned a name, Nox was it?" She tapped at her lips, pretending to think. Jimin held tightly onto his glass, "I may have some information about a certain Priest who worships him and a strange cult that follows him. I am not sure what goes on with these gods because I am Catholic, but surely I can relay whispers."

He wasn't sure what she claimed to be, but he didn't care.

"Tell me."

Jimin didn't have time for games. He needed to know now, his life depended on it.

Serafina tsked, "Nuh-uh-uh. I have given you a drink, and a dash of information you need. It is your turn. What is your name?"

Jimin growled at the manipulation, and Serafina only laughed at the sound. She was enjoying this a little too much, and he did not like being toyed with. Only one person was allowed to do that to him. "Jimin."

"Jimin." Serafina took a sip of wine, looking a little too lofty for his liking. She swallowed and lifted her shoulders straight before leaning in and whispering, not wishing for anyone else to hear. "I need your blood."

"Why?" Jimin inquired stiffly, not liking this one bit. Even if they were from another realm as they claimed, he did not doubt blood magic could be used against him.

"I am on a mission of retribution. There is someone who has wronged me greatly and I must-" Jimin pretended not to notice the tears that formed in the woman's eyes. She reminded him of Leila so much then, when she gritted them away. She looked up at him, a determined gleam in her eyes, "I need blood from a creature of a separate realm, one like me but not the same. When I caught your scent through the shadows, I knew I had to find you."

"What did they do to you?" Jimin asked, his voice soft. Her chin drew to her chest, as she dimmed before him. He did something unlike him, taking her hand in his own. She seemed to shock at the touch but did not speak. "Tell me, please. And I will consider."

"The leader of our kind killed my father, my poor helpless human father. She took his life because I would not forfeit mine." She grabbed at the necklace she wore, a long and short gold line littered with black diamonds. Her eyes were flooded like the heavens during a storm, her lips a straight and willful line, "It is all my fault. But I must make it right or else he has died for nothing."

Memories flashed behind his eyes. Black, silver, and gold blood. Retribution, he knew her very well. He had been given a chance at it, and he would not take away someone else's.

"Give me the bottle."

Serafina stared at him, blinking. "It was that easy? I thought I might have to take you to bed." A small smile touched her lips, but he saw through it. It was still covered in tears. "Not that I would have minded."

She placed the bottle before him, and Jimin already carefully cut a line at his wrist. He lifted the bottle of glass to the wound, watching the black substance fill it. He waved off the many thanks Serafina sent him, wincing as he dug in deeper to fill it quicker.

His attention swayed from the girl before him when he scented roses and destruction. He stopped talking, his eyes catching Aera from across the room.

"Jimin?" Serafina called, but he wasn't paying attention. His hand went slack on the bottle, his body buzzing as he took Aera in.

She looked like a siren, come to capture him and pull him into the black depths of the sea. Despite his deep fears, he would have gone happily.

She pinned half of her hair away from her face, showing her fine bones and lifted green eyes. They glittered like gems across her face, her cheeks bitten by the sun. Her skin glowed from the sun's touch, making her curves stand out more. Her black hair ran down to the small of her back, and she painted her lips a blood red and her eyes a smokey black. He could scent the soft oil she added to her skin, bathing her thighs and shoulders. She held her shoulders back and chin up as she captivated the entire room, her hips swaying.

She adorned herself with a black, sleeveless lace dress that left little to the imagination. It was see-through across her stomach, only opaque around her thighs and breast. Begging to be adored by him through the night.

Except, that is not what she wished for. A cold look captured her elegant face, as she was on her hunt.

"Oh fuck me," Jimin murmured, seeing her head in the direction of the table of young sailors.

"What?" Serafina called to him, before turning to follow his gaze. "Damn." The woman admitted, her voice dipping with accusation. She leaned back, pointing with her finger. "What's the story between you two?"

Jimin could only gape like an idiot. He completely froze over when she stopped in her tracks, her green eyes finding him like a drawn arrow. They blazed at him, a fury in them he had not seen before. He readied himself, believing they were in danger.

Before he realized where her gaze lay, right on the bottle of blood between him and Serafina.

It was of the highest offense to give one's blood to another if one already has a pereche. Aera would know, she did it all the time as a fuck you to Garnett. It could be the reason she looked like she wanted to strangle him with his own manly parts at the moment.

"Take this." Jimin shoved the bottle towards her. The girl shuffled to catch it, a frown on her face. "Take it right now and hide it."

Luckily, she did not question it. The man behind him snapped his fingers, and the bottle disappeared before their very eyes and out from her hands.

His chest heaved, looking back up at Aera. Her expression went cold once more, simply taking him in and the girl that sat across from him. Before she lifted her chin once again and sat right in the middle of the young male group.

That hurt her.

"It's quite tragic," Jimin answered Serafina, who was watching the pair closely.

So much for showing her a different side to him, he thought miserably. His heart squeezed painfully, knowing she would take it as another trick. Another way to hurt her.

That was until he realized what just happened.

She cared. She cared. If she felt nothing for him, his giving his blood away wouldn't have mattered. Jimin held back his sadistic smile, using his fangs to do so.

Fuck being good, I want to draw blood.

"Unrequited love?" Serafina guessed, looking up at him through her lashes. Jimin finally looked back at her, wondering if he looked insane smiling after what just happened. But the stranger did not judge, instead her gaze moved just past his body. "I know how you feel."

It did not take an intelligent creature it was her partner she was staring at. The longing in her eyes tugged at his chest, as things rarely did. He recognized that look in the mirror.

"Do you?" He asked, despite knowing. Jimin wanted to laugh, thinking if he had told months ago in his prison cell that he would be sitting in front of a vampire spilling his guts, he would kill them for daring to make him so naive. Yet, here he was. The man leaned closer so that Aera would not catch their whispers. He witnessed Serafina finding solace in his release, "It feels like a bed of thorns that I must lay in every night. It hurts worse when I know that I created it myself. I could have chosen differently, I could have been the man that she would proudly want." "Instead I chose to be her torment. All because I was too afraid I would be nothing at all here."

This time, it was Serafina who grabbed his hand. Jimin let her, astounded that this being did not make his skin crawl as others managed to. Maybe it was the genuine care in her eyes, that was not feigned for the eyes of others. Maybe it was because it was a person who understood that cruelty was a shield for the weakness he could not overcome.

"Tell her, tell her you love her. Because you can." Her eyes flashed to the man behind them once more, and she squeezed his hand harder. "Do not take your free will for granted. The worst that can happen, is what you create yourselves. Though by looking at the pair of you, I figure you can create more chaos than the world needs." They shared in their laughter, letting it settle between them.

"I think you should take your own advice." Jimin sucked in a breath through his teeth. "I feel like falling in love with you would be a man's best mistake."

Serafina laughed painfully, and she let go of his hand. "If only it were that easy." Then, she got down from her chair. She grabbed onto his neck, pulling herself close to his ear, "The ones who follow Nox will be looking for you. The Priest fled somewhere in the night, and they believe it is a newcomer's fault for the disappearance. I would start looking in the old Temple by the sea."

Fuck. That meant they were close. His heart pounded, fearful of what he would have to encounter when he finally met his family once again.

And what would be left of him after.

"Thank you-" Jimin started before she cut him off with her hand placed over his mouth.

"Don't thank me yet," Her unusual eyes glittered with humor. "What I am about to do will help us more than our pathetic stares and desires will ever do."

Jimin lifted a brow, before she stood behind him, wrapping both her arms around his neck. Pressing her chest against his back she embraced him. Jimin did not question it, instead leaning back as he realized Aera's body was turned to the side. Nodding absent-mindedly at what the men said across from her.

She was listening.

"Your friend does not seem to like me very much," Serafina said, the words curling seductively. Loud enough for Aera to hear them.

Jimin watched, as Aera gripped harder onto her chair. Her head turned until her gaze burned on Jimin and Serafina.

Serafina laughed, coming close to the shell of his ear. "See? You have a chance." The woman sighed, "Trust me."

Jimin nodded before the vampire turned his chin. Her lips caught his own, and he lay still as she gave him a warm peck. "For your kindness, I will never be able to thank you enough. But I can help write your story." She smiled, before moving away from him.

Jimin could not help but smile, as she waltzed over confidently away from him and to her partner. The man stood, and Jimin's eyes followed his stark height. His jaw was clenched, and his hands bunched as he gripped stiffly onto a cane. From what he could see of the man's eyes, and the way they tracked Serafina, he wondered what stopped the obvious pair from being together. The man seemed obsessed with her.

Her eyes took him in with reverence, and Jimin was glad she wished for their swift exit. He had a feeling he would be caught in a fight otherwise.

"Let's leave Cian." She laughed out, and the man already started to form shadow between his hands. Jimin tried to hide his shock at the show of magic, almost similar to his own. The woman turned to him, winking. "Good luck, to both of you."

"Same to you, Serafina." He answered genuinely, the interaction reminding him of what he was like before the darkness took over his mind.

"What did you just do?" Aera growled from behind him.

Claws ran up his spine.

The man turned, hoping his hand did not shake around his brandy. They were no longer in the safety of the castle, surrounded by friends. Distance, time, and duty folded between them. It was raw, and pure tension filling the space. Nothing left to delude them from reality. He felt her anger, from the heat of her body to the jade of her eyes.

"Nothing you wouldn't do to get what you want." He took a sip from his glass, careful to place his tongue at the ice. He eyed the woman, watching her face grow hotter as he drank. "What? Your little dress isn't working on those men over there? What a shame."

Tell her.

Tell her because you can.

Tell her before it is too late.

"You sniveling, snaking, conniving bastard." Aera's eyes churned like raging storm. He believed every word that faithfully left her mouth like a prayer, "By the end of this journey, I will bury you below the ground. I will make sure your name is never uttered again. I loath you."

Jimin should stop trying to make her angry, to see the murderous glare in her eyes. She more than likely believed Serafina and Cian worked with Nox, and he was pledging his allegiance to them. He should apologize, and prove his innocence.

But he just couldn't help but push her over the edge before he did.

It would be the last time, if it all ended up in flames after.

"I thirst for your hatred. I will drink it from you like the finest of wines." He bit his lip, staring directly into her eyes.

The woman snapped.

Aera thrust forward, using one sharp nail to pierce through his shirt and cut the middle of his chest. Jimin let out a pant, that morphed into an amused laugh.

"I will cut your throat before you even get the chance." She dug in deeper, bringing their lips closer. Jimin wanted to tell her if she wished to take his heart, all she had to do was hold out her hands.

Instead, the man grabbed her throat. At first, gently he used the grip to bring her closer. He watched her pupils dilate, her mouth curling further into hatred. She wanted to do what she claimed. He ran his thumb over her slow pulse, needing to feel her alive under his palms.

Tell her. Tell her.

Jimin leaned forward, too close to her lips. Their eyes locking at he bit out the words.

"Be more more original, love."

<><><><><><><><><>
(A/n: AHHHHH cliffhanger. okay this lowkey might be my fave chapter ever oh my god the drama, the tea, the tension!!!! We Stan.

Also LOL I added my characters from my book damned into this book. I thought a little multi-verse action could be fun!

Okay, I kinda love the flashbacks with them because it adds more to the tension. You see how they were before Leila, and just how strong their emotions were. Aera will want to blame their new magical bond all she wants, but she knows deep down they have always felt strongly for each other, no matter the emotion.

I wrote this so you guys could see Jimin's pov of the situation. This man wants Aera badlllyyyyy but he has always wanted her to choose him. He knows that she is strong, and he wants her to fight for him in the way he was willing to for her.

The point of this flashback was to show how he knew she was meant for Taehyung, and he wanted her anyways. He fought for her attention (not all good) but he also showed her he was willing to go against everything that was right in order to get what he wanted. He knows that Aera is hiding behind her duties, he knows that she is refusing to break the mold for herself. It's why he likes seeing her angry. He wants her to lose control, to make her own decisions.

Also it shows the difference between him when he is possessed vs actual him. Yes he is misunderstood, but he is more morally gray than Taehyung's character I would say. Him and Aera have some genuinely frowned upon qualities, but it is what makes them aisllakwendbjdissi.

Okay I'm talking to much and I don't want to reveal anything else about the story, but yeah here is a little small explanation!